Door latch mechanism



Nov. 10, 1959 w. J. SCHAEFER DOOR LATCH MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 28. 1957 l ll IN VEN TOR. Wm 80/? J Fe/m EFER ML w L I. nu." w 3.. u h. n WWW M w 1 WW 701cm w w I I H I I HQHHHIMI H wwwl l w H H I United States atent DOOR LATCH MECHANISM WilburJ. Schaefer, Rocky River, Ohio, assignor to The Interior Steel Equipment Company, Cleveland, Ohio, acorporation of Ohio Application October 28, 1957, Serial'No. 692,777

'6 Claims. (Cl. 292336.3)

This invention relates to doorlatch mechanism and,

.as. one of its objects, aims to provide a novel latch mechanism of a simple and practical construction and which is well suited for use on lockers and the like, including school lockers.

It is desirable that latch mechanisms for lockers and the like be of a simple and inexpensive. construction,

easily operated, and devoid of any projection likely to bebumped or struck with resulting injury to a person or .damage to the latch mechanism. For various reasons these characteristics are especially desirable for school ,lockers including the probability that children will be injured by any projecting portion of a latch mechanism,

and also the tendency for children to damage a latch mechanism by kicking-against any suchprojecting portion.

As another or its objects the presentinvention accord- :ingly provides novel latch mechanism ofthis character which will be relatively inexpensive to manufacture'and install, easily operated, and devoid of any projecting portion creating a hazard in regard to'possible personal injury or in regard to damage to the latch mechanism.

.-It is also desirable that the latch mechanisms of lockers and the. like be subject to locking to prevent unauthorized .entry,.preferably by a locking device of the-padlock type.

Asa further object this invention therefore provides a novel latch mechanism having the characteristics-mentioned above and to which. a detachable lockingdevice,

.such. as a padlock or the like, can be easily applied and Wherein' the detachable locking device, when in its applied; position, is housed and protected within the latch -mechanismand is prevented from scraping or banging against the door to mar the finish thereof.

Additionally this invention provides novel latch mechanism for use on a door having a front surface. opening andanadjacent movable latch bar,.comprising a panlike bodyadapted for mounting inisuch surface opening in a substantially flush relation and manually operable actuating means connected with the latch bar and including'a. trigger portion projecting into the pan recess andbeing retractible relativea'thereto, the retraction of .the trigger portion'being in a door unlatching direction :and being normally prevented by a locking device detachably applied to the. trigger portion and lying substantially entirely in the pan recess.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent in the following detailed descriptionand in the accompanying. drawings forming apart of this specification and in which,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of alockerhaving the-latch mechanism of the present invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2=is a partial front elevation corresponding with aportion: of-Fig. 1 but on a larger scale and with the I locking device removed;

aFigta3 is;a1 partialtfront: elevation similar to Fig. ;2lbut withaportions=:broken away to further illustrate the-:con- "struction and mounting of the latch mechanism;

2,912,271 Patented Nov. 10, 1959 ice Fig. 4 is a partial vertical section taken on section line 44 of Fig. 3;

vFig. Sis a partial transverse section taken on section line 5-5 of Fig. 3;

Fig.6 is a fragmentary-vertical section taken on section line 66 of Fig. 3;.and

Fig. 7 is a partial vertical section taken at the location of one of the latchmembers as indicated by section line 7-7 of Fig. l.

As representing one practical embodiment of the presentv invention, the accompanying drawings show novel latch mechanism 10 applied to a-locker 11 of the storage cabinet .type frequently found inschools, gymnasiums and factories.

The. locker 11 comprises. a cabinet structure 12 which includes a doorframe 13 defining'a door opening 14,

and a door 15' connected withthe door frame by suitable hinges 16 and swingable to a closed position as shown in Fig. 1. The. door frame 13 is provided, at the side. thereof remote fromthe hinges 15, with vertically spaced keepers 17 which are here shown as being of the type having a forwardly projecting-hook portion 18. The

keepers 17 are. carried by suitable mounting brackets 19 attached to the door frame 13.

The door 15 is of a conventional form having a substantially fiat'front surface 21 and also having along its upright free edge. 22. a hollow stile or rail 23 defining a gui'deway 24. The rail 23 is of a box-like cross-sectional :shape and is provided along one side thereof with a vertical slot or opening25 which communicates with the guideway 24. The rear wall 26 of the rail 23 is provided with vertically spaced slots 27 through which the hook- -like striker andretaining portion 18' of the keepers 17 projects into the guideway 24, as shown in Fig. 7, when the doorlS is-swung to itsclosed position.

The latch mechanism 10 is applied to the door 15 and comprises, in generalpa pan-like hollow body 30, a latch bar 31 and a latch. bar actuating means 32. The body 30 is preferably a sheet metal member having a frontopen- :ing-SS-at the front side thereof and comprise's an outer -lateral flange 34 surrounding the-front opening and a quadrangular rear pan portion 35 having a recess 36 with The pan por- The door 15*is provided with an opening 42 in the front surface 21'thereof which is of a suitable size and shape to receive the pan portion'35 of the body 30. The body 30 is mounted on the door 15 with the pan portion 35 thereof projecting into or through the surface opening 42 of the door and with the front flange 34 lying against the front of the door in a substantially flush relation to the surface 21 thereof.

The body 310' is suitably attached to the door 15 as by 7 means of screws 44 extending through the marginal flange 34.at points adjacent the lower end of the body. The

. attaching. meansfor the body 30 alsocornprises. suitable retaining-lugs v45 which are integral with, and-struck outwardly from, the top edge wall .3? of the pan portion 35. Thellugs 45-are engaged behind the front wall of the door 15 when the pan portion. 35of the body 36 is inserted into the surface opening;42--and-prevent-:withdrawal of-the uppen-endof the body from the surface opening when the screws 44 have been assembled in place.

The latch bar 31 is here shown as being a channelshaped member which is vertically slidable in the guideway 24 of the rail member 23 of the door 15. The bar 31 is provided with swingable latch members 47 which are mounted thereon at vertically spaced points for cooperation with the hook portions 18 of the keepers 17. The latch members 47 are of a hook-like shape and are swingably connected with the latch bar 31, as by pivot elements 48 extending through the flanges of this bar, such that they will be movable into a door-latched engagement with the keepers 17, as shown in Fig. 7, when the door is swung to its closed position.

Suitable springs 49 are mounted on the pivot elements 48 and are effective on the latch members 47 to releasably hold the same in a position for door latching cooperation with the keepers 17. The latch members 47 are movable into their door-latched engagement with the keepers 17 without requiring lifting of the latch bar 31, but are disengageable from the keepers only by a lifting of the latch bar.

The actuating means 32 for the latch bar 31 is preferably in the form of a Z-shaped member 51 having a vertical arm portion 52 extending into the guideway 24 through the side opening and connected with the latch bar by means of screws 53. The Z-shaped member 51 also comprises a trigger portion 54 and an intermediate connecting portion 55 connecting the trigger portion with the arm portion 52. The trigger portion 54 extends into the pan recess 33 of the body through the opening 41 of the latter.

An upward door-unlatching movement can be applied to the latch bar 31 by a manual lifting force exerted on the trigger portion 54 of the actuating means 32. To facilitate the application of such a manual lifting force to the trigger portion 54, the trigger portion is provided with a notch or recess 58 in the lower end thereof which faces downward and rearward relative to the rear wall 37 of the pan portion and which has a convenient shape and location to comfortably receive the index finger of the person applying the lifting force thereto.

From the construction of the latch mechanism 10 as thus far described, it will be seen that the trigger portion 54 is retractible relative to the pan recess 33 during the door-unlatching lifting movement being manually applied thereto and that such door-unlatching movement of the trigger portion is an outward movement thereof in the opening 41 and in a direction substantially edgewise of the pan portion 35 of the body 30. When the latch bar 31 has been thus moved upwardly, by the lifting force of an index finger or the like applied to the trigger portion 54 to thereby cause the latch members 47 to disengage the keepers 17, the door 15 can be freely swung to its open position. For producing such swinging of the door, the notched lower end of the trigger portion 54 forms a hook element or handle portion 59 against which a pulling force can be applied by the same index finger which has lifted the latch bar 31. When the door has been thus swung to the open position, the trigger portion 54 is released by the removal of the index finger therefrom, whereupon gravity causes a downward movement of the latch bar and of the Z-shaped member connected thereto.

To prevent a noisy engagement of the Z-shaped member 55 with the pan portion 35 of the body 30, a resiliently flexible cushioning member or bumper 61 is interposed between the top edge wall 39 and the intermediate portion 55 of the Z-shaped member. The bumper 61 is here shown as being a soft-vulcanized rubber member of a button-like shape. The bumper member 61 can be mounted on the Z-shaped member by means of a stern portion 62 extending through, and retained in, an opening of the latter.

The trigger portion 54 is provided with a transverse opening 63 and is of a length such that when the latch bar 31 is in its lower or door-latched position, the trigger portion will extend into the pan recesses 33 for the approximate distance indicated in the drawings and with the transverse opening 63 located adjacent to and immediately below the top edge wall 39. As has been indicated above, it is desirable to be able to lock the latch bar 31 in its door-latched position and, for this purpose, the latch. mechanism it? includes a locking device 65 which is here shown as being of the padlock type and which is detachably applied to the trigger portion 54.

The padlock 65 can be of a key-actuated type or can be of the combination type and comprises a body 66 having a hasp 67 projecting therefrom and engageable in the opening 63 of the trigger portion 54. When the padlock 65 has been app-lied to the trigger portion 54, the hasp 67 will prevent the retracting movement or withdrawal of the trigger portion relative to the pan recess 33 such that the latch bar 31 will be maintained in its doorlatched position and the locker door 15 will then be in its locked condition. The pan portion 35 of the hollow body 30 is of a size, in relation to the padlock 65 intended to be used, such that the padlock, when in its applied position to the trigger portion 54, will lie substantially entirely within the pan recess and the padlock will then be housed and protected in the hollow body and will not be likely to swing against or scrape across the front of the door to cause moving of the finish thereof.

Although the padlock 65- will be readily accessible when the locker is to be unlocked, it will not be in an exposed position to constitute a hazard for personal injury or to be subject to kicking thereagainst by children. It will also be seen that since the trigger portion 545 projects into the pan recess 33 edgewise thereof, it is always entirely within and housed by the hollow body 30 such that it does not constitute a hazard for personal injury nor is it in an exposed relation to be subject to kicking thereagainst by children.

When the locker 11 is to be opened from a closed and locked condition, the padlock 65 is unlocked and its hasp 67 is disengaged from the opening 63 of the trigger portion 54. As soon as the trigger portion 54 has been actuated to move the latch bar 31 to its door-unlatched position and the door 15 has been swung to its open position, the hasp of the padlock can be immediately reengaged in the opening of the trigger portion. When the door 15 is to be locked, it can be swung to its closed position without removing the padlock from the trigger portion inasmuch as the pivoted latch members 47 will be automatically engageable with the keepers 17 and will assume their locked position shown in Fig. 7 when the door reaches its fully closed position.

From the accompanying drawings and the foregoing detailed description, it will now be readily understood that this invention provides novel door latch mechanism of a simple and practical construction and which will have no projecting portion to constitute a hazard for per sonal injury or for damage to the mechanism. It will now also be understood that this novel latch mechanism includes a detachable locking device which, in its applied position, is in a housed and protected position.

Although this novel latch mechanism has been illustrated and described herein to a somewhat detailed extent, it will be understood, of course, that the invention is not to be regarded as being limited correspondingly in scope, but includes all changes and modifications coming within the terms of the claims hereof.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. In a latch mechanism for a swingable door or the like provided with movable latch means and also having a surface opening in the front thereof, a body having walls defining an open-front pan portion and also having flange means projecting laterally from said pan portion substantially in the plane of the front opening thereof, said 'panpor'tion having a recess extending thereinto from said front opening and one ofsaidwa'lls having an opening therein ;in communication with said recess, said body being adaptedformounting' on said door with said flange means substantially flush against the door front and with .said pan portion extending into said surface opening, and .latch actuating'meansincluding a manually movable trigger projectinginto said- 'recess'through'said wall openingandhaving'an' exposedfree end lying wholly within said recess, said'trigger bein-g reciprocable in said wall opening by actuating movement substantially in the plane of the door for movement of said latch means to doorlatched and door-unlatched position, said free end having a handle portion engageable by a human finger for causing said actuating movement in the door-unlatching direction and for also applying a manual pulling force to the trigger in a direction substantially normal to the plane of the door for imparting opening swinging movement to the door.

2. In latch mechanism for a swingable door or the like provided with movable latch means and also having a surface opening in the front thereof, a body having edge walls and a rear wall defining an open-front pan portion and also having a marginal flange projecting laterally from said pan portion around the front opening thereof, said pan portion having a recess extendin thereinto from said open front and one of said edge walls being an upper edge wall and having an opening therein in communication with said recess, said body being adapted for mounting on said door with said flange substantially flush against the door front and with said pan portion extending into said surface opening, and latch actuating means including a trigger projecting into said recess through the opening of said one wall, said trigger havin an exposed free end lying wholly within said recess and provided with a finger-receiving notch of a size to accommodate a human finger for applying a manual lifting force to the trigger and for also applying a manual pulling force to the trigger in a direction substantially normal to the plane of the door for imparting swinging movement to the door, said trigger being reciprocable in said wall opening by movement in the plane of said door and being movable in one direction by said manual-lifting force for actuating said latch means to door-unlatched position.

3. In latch mechanism for a swingable door or the like provided with movable latch means and also having a surface opening in the front thereof, a body having walls defining an open-front pan portion and also having flange means projecting laterally from said pan portion substantially in the plane of the front opening thereof, said pan portion having a recess extending thereinto from said front opening and one of said walls having an opening therein in communication with said recess, said body being adapted for mounting on said door with said flange means substantially flush against the door front and with said pan portion extending into said surface opening, latch actuating means including a manually movable trigger projecting into said recess through said wall opening and having an exposed free end lying wholly within said recess, said trigger being reciprocably movable in said wall opening by actuating movement in the plane of said door for causing actuation of said latch means to door-latched and door-unlatched positions, said free end having a handle portion engageable by a human finger for causing said actuating movement in the door-unlatchin direction and for also applying a manual pulling force to the trigger in a direction substantially normal to the plane of the door for imparting swinging movement to the door, and a detachable locking device lying substantially entirely within said recess and engaging said trigger for preventing the manual movement of the latter in said door-unlatching direction.

4. Latch mechanism for a swingable door or the like provided with movable latch means and also having an opening in the' front facethereof and a guideway thereon adjacent said opening, comprising a latch carrier for "movement in said guidewa, a body for mounting on said door in a substantially flush relation to said front face and having walls'defin-ing a pan portion adapted to bereceived in the'door opening-and including an upper "edge wall, sa-id pa-n portion'having a recess extending therintofrom the front of saidbodyand-a wall'opening -in'said upper edge wall communicating with said recess, actuating means connected with said carrier and including a trigger projecting into said recess through said wall opening and having an exposed lower free end lying wholly within said recess and provided with a fingerreceiving notch of a size to accommodate a human finger for applying a manual lifting force to the trigger and for also applying a manual pulling force to the trigger in a direction substantially normal to the plane of the door for imparting opening swinging movement to the door, said trigger being reciprocable in said wall opening by movement substantially in the plane of the door and the actuation of said latch means to the door-unlatched position being in response to the manual lifting of said trigger,

and a locking device lying substantially entirely within said recess and detachably engaging said trigger for preventing the manual actuation of the latter in the doorunlatching direction.

5. In latch mechanism for a door or the like having a surface opening in the front thereof and a guideway thereon in offset relation to said surface opening, a bar slidable in said guideway to'door-latching and door-unlatching positions and carrying a latch member for engagement with a keeper, a body having edge walls and a rear wall defining an open-front pan portion and also having a marginal flange projecting laterally from said pan portion around the front opening thereof, said pan portion having a recess extending thereinto from said front opening and one of said edge walls having an opening therein in communication with said recess, said body being adapted for mounting on said door with said flange substantially flush against the door front and with said pan portion extending into said surface opening of the door, and a Z-shaped actuating member lying substantially in the plane of the door and connected with said bar, said actuating member extending into said recess through the opening of said one edge wall, said actuating member being reciprocable in said wall opening by movement thereof in the plane of the door and having an exposed free end lying wholly within said recess, said actuating member being movable to actuate said bar to a door-unlatched position by a manual actuating force applied to said free end.

6. In latch mechanism for a swingable door or the like having a surface opening in the front thereof and a guideway thereon in ofiset relation to said surface opening, a bar slidable in said guideway to door-latching and doorunlatching positions and carrying a latch member for engagement with a keeper, a body having edge walls and a rear wall defining an open-front pan portion and also having a marginal flange projecting laterally from said pan portion around the front opening thereof, said pan portion having a recess extending thereinto from said front opening and one of said edge walls being an upper wall and having an opening therein in communication with said recess, said body being adapted for mounting on said door with said flange substantially flush against the door front and with said pan portion extending into said surface opening of the door, a Z-shaped actuating member lying substantially in the plane of the door and connected with said bar, said actuating member extending into said recess through the opening of said one edge wall and having a free end lying wholly within said recess and provided with a finger-receiving notch of a size to accommodate a human finger for applying a manual lifting force to the actuating member and for also applying a manual pulling force to said actuating 7 8 member in a direction substantially normal to the plane said locking device to receive and protect the latter of the door for imparting opening swinging movement when it is applied to said free end. to the door, said actuating member being reciprocable References Cited in the file of this patent in said wall opening by movement substantially in the plane of the door and the movement of said bar to the 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS door-unlatched position being in response to said manual 1,625,145 OConnor Apr. 19, 1927 lifting force, and a locking device of the padlock type 2,033,806 Baker et al Mar. 10, 1936 detachably engaging said free end for preventing the 2,370,841 Chervenka Mar. 6,1945 movement of said actuating member in the door-unlatch- 2,821,425 VOgt Jan. 28, 1958 ing direction, said recess being of a size in relation to 10 2,825,219 Marzillier Mar. 4, 1958 

